Help (Dramione)

Overwhelmed

Hermione got so many questions throughout the day that she just didn't feel like answering. People were constantly badgering her about why Draco was at their table and why they seemed so close. A lot of the time she just ignored them. She explained part of the situation to closer friends like Ginny, Nevel and Luna. Hermione left out the part about her self harm habits. All she said was that she was feeling down lately and he noticed and helped her. They all seemed to half accept that answer. People who didn't know her at all could see that there was something off at this point. She looked like she never got sleep, her hair was always a frizzy mess lately and, by accident, she had not been eating much at all. She noticed that she was losing weight but she didn't really care. She told herself that she didn't have an eating disorder, she just simply forgot to eat. It wasn't to be skinnier or because she didn't like how she looked. Lately she had started to think she didn't need it though. She was just thinking logically. If she had gone this long without eating much at lunch than maybe she just didn't need lunch. She told herself she didn't have a problem but how baggy her usual jacket began to look made her question sometimes.

Hermione was just trying to go about her day but every single Gryffindor, even first years who were only asking because everyone else was, asked her something about Draco. Including some very inappropriate questions. She continued to give people dirty looks but for some that just encouraged them. By noon there were rumors flying around the school. Hermione felt eyes on her all the time. People were calling her horrible things. She was the Gryffindor slut. That was the one that stuck. She had seen Draco nearly beat up multiple kids before his friends pulled him away and she was sure he had succeeded in hitting a few. By the end of the day, Fred and George had become her bodyguards. Anywhere that Ron and Harry couldn't walk her, the twins stepped in. People were being cruel. She had thought about going to a professor about the situation but then she might have to explain a little more than she wanted them to know. She knew it would blow over in a few days so what was the point anyway?

With everything going on throughout the day, Hermione felt like her mind was off the rails. All the negative things she thinks about herself anyway were now mixing with all the horrible things people were calling her now. Why were people being so mean? She sat next to a boy for crying out loud. Even if that boy is someone that people don't approve of that doesn't give people the right or even much of an incentive to say things like this. People were saying that the good girl had gone bad and that she was different behind closed doors. They were saying things that just weren't true. Hermione went to bed that night like she used to: wishing she would stay asleep. But she couldn't sleep at all. She couldn't sleep no matter what. She couldn't calm herself down. She couldn't get all the bad thoughts out of her head. She wanted everything to stop. Hermione got out of bed quietly and made her was to her usual spot. Only this time, there was no one there to greet her.